Outer Gods invade, stuff them all into your equipment inventory.

Suddenly, a casting delay caused a healing spell that should have landed on a heavily wounded silver swordsman to be a beat slower.

It's that half-beat delay.

"Clang—Snap!"

The silver swordsman who stood on the outermost edge and took the most hits finally had his chest shattered by a powerful battle axe strike.

Its massive metal body crashed to the ground, knocking its companion behind it off balance.

And just like that, the gap appeared.

As if the first domino had been toppled, the situation changed abruptly, and the already fragile defenses instantly collapsed with a fatal gap.

More and more silver-ranked human monsters poured into the gap, and the silver-ranked axemen and swordsmen controlled by Cheng Jiyuan tried to fill the gap, but because their formation was broken, they suffered several times the pressure as before.

The saying goes, "When an army is defeated, it collapses like a mountain."

One Silver Warrior after another was killed, and Cheng Jiyuan's healing could no longer keep up with the avalanche-like rate of casualties.

He could only watch helplessly as the dozen or so silver-rank human demons he had painstakingly controlled were defeated and torn apart one by one in just a few breaths.

The last barrier has finally disappeared, and the entrance to the cave is now completely unobstructed.

One by one, the silver-ranked human demons pressed forward into the depths of the cave, towards the exhausted and wounded group of people.

We've reached a dead end.

Cheng Jiyuan desperately wanted to use his beast-taming ability to temporarily control a demon to continue the fight, but Sun Shuo stopped him.

"That's enough, Sixth Brother, save your energy!"

He said, panting heavily.

Cheng Jiyuan was already exhausted and beyond saving; at this point, trying to control the enemy monsters was wishful thinking.

"Even if... even if you risk your life and manage to control one... what then?"

Sun Shuo's gaze swept over the dense, ever-approaching silver-white figures outside the cave entrance, his tone filled with despair.

"Look around... how many are left? You control one, and the rest... one claw can tear it to shreds, and then... keep crushing it."

"It's pointless... Sixth Brother, really... there's no point in doing anything."

Sun Shuo lowered his voice, loosened his grip, swayed, almost slipped against the rock wall, and sat down.

Any futile struggle only postpones the final outcome by a negligible few seconds.

Why bother?

"Sit down too, Sixth Brother. That way you'll die more comfortably."

Sun Shuo patted the spot next to him and gestured to Cheng Jiyuan.

Cheng Jiyuan was the sixth among their childhood friends, a name unique to them.

"Third Brother, I'm truly sorry this time..."

Cheng Jiyuan stopped insisting and staggered to Sun Shuo's side. He leaned against the equally cold rock wall and slowly sat down.

Once the weight of his body was released, the feeling of weakness almost made him collapse.

His body had already reached its limit.

"And everyone else, I'm so sorry, brothers!"

His gaze swept over the other barely breathing companions in the cave, and he apologized.

"It was my... greed, my arrogance... that led everyone into this deadly place."

If he hadn't overestimated his abilities and underestimated the danger of this newborn nest, they wouldn't have ended up like this.

Sun Shuo waved his hand, interrupting him:

"What's the point of saying all this now? We heroes are here to risk our lives... It's no surprise that we ended up like this."

Besides, the decision to enter this newly formed monster's lair was made by several of us together; it's not your fault alone.

He paused, took a breath, and seemed unconcerned.

Of ten brave warriors, no more than two will die a natural death. It's perfectly normal for people like them to die violently in the wild.

They had this awareness from the moment they embarked on the path of the hero.

"Besides, aren't you mistaken about something?"

Sun Shuo turned his head to the side, and despite his pale face, he managed to force a slightly roguish expression as he looked at Cheng Jiyuan.

"I'm the captain of this team; you're just a temporary extra."

"Understand?"

"Tell me honestly, are you trying to seize my power?"

He took a breath and continued, deliberately drawing out his words.

"Seize power, go ahead!"

"But we'll have to wait until you're officially a member of the team first. You don't even have a permanent position, and you're already thinking of seizing power? Dream on!"

Cheng Jiyuan has never joined his team.

Cheng Jiyuan used to have a team, but several years ago, an accident killed everyone in the team. Since then, Cheng Jiyuan has never joined another team, and even when a mission requires it, he will only choose to temporarily team up with others.

Sun Shuo also heard that this guy spends a lot of money every year to help the children left behind by his former teammates.

What an idiot!

He didn't know how many times he had cursed Cheng Jiyuan for this. If it weren't for these things, Cheng Jiyuan would have been a B-level talent long ago.

How could it have taken until now?

"Yeah, yeah! Sixth Brother, why don't you just join the team?"

The people around them also joined in the commotion.

Although Cheng Jiyuan did not join the team, he maintained a good relationship with them because of Sun Shuo.

They also highly valued this loyal and compassionate temporary teammate.

"That's right, that's right! With Sixth Brother joining the team, we'll have a more imposing presence even on our journey to the underworld!"

Another team member, leaning against the rock wall and barely breathing, also reluctantly echoed.

At that moment, they seemed to have forgotten the horde of monsters that was closing in from not far away.

As Cheng Jiyuan listened to these familiar words, looked at Sun Shuo's feigned fierce face, and glanced at the brothers around him, his throat tightened and his nose stung.

He opened his mouth, as if to say something, but found the sound stuck in his throat.

In the end, he simply nodded heavily.

"Joining the team... I'm now a full member of the 'North Wind' squad."

His voice was hoarse, yet carried a hint of indescribable relief.

"Brothers, in this life, being able to die alongside you... isn't too bad."

The commotion inside the cave gradually subsided.

They stopped looking at each other and instead turned their gaze back to the silvery tide that was now almost within reach, quietly waiting for the final moment to arrive.

With my brother by my side, I'll have someone to look after me on my journey to the underworld.

They have no reason to be afraid.

But suddenly they realized something was wrong.

Chaos erupted at the rear of the Silver Human Demon Army; they even halted their advance and collectively turned back.

"Is...someone here?"

One of the team members cried out, his voice trembling with excitement.

"They're attacking these silver-rank human monsters!"

"We're saved!"

"Reinforcements?! Reinforcements!"

The other person's voice trembled, filled with the ecstatic joy of escaping a desperate situation.

Happiness arrives unexpectedly, and the calm acceptance of death is instantly ignited by the instinct for survival.

They huddled together, craning their necks, staring intently at the rear battlefield that would determine their life or death.

For everyone, those figures stirring up waves in the silvery tide are the only light in their eyes at this moment.